Jefferson City, Tenn.----Competing in their final 2024 fall semester meet, the top-10 Wingate University swimming teams split a South Atlantic Conference dual meet against Carson-Newman at the Maddox Student Activities Center on Friday and Saturday. The Wingate men grounded the Eagles 164-151, while the Carson-Newman women picked up a 162-152 victory.
 
What They Are Saying
Wingate head coach Kevin Hennessy
 
"Heart and guts…that's the biggest take away for me after a hard weekend of racing. Our teams raced with all heart and a lot of gutsy swims coming off a strenuous final exams' week. Finding ways to manufacture good swims and get to the wall first, even in adverse conditions, is what it's all about. Racing and competing like this is what sets teams up for success down the road. We are very proud of our teams and where we are…and we are very excited for next semester and championship season."
 
Men's highlights
 
The Bulldog men picked up eight event victories, all of which occurring in individual events. Sophomore Damir Ipkaev led the squad with two wins. Ipkaev won the 500 Freestyle on Friday in 4:30.89 and touched first in the 1000 Freestyle Saturday with a time of 9:23.88. Freshman Yassine Sebbata claimed the 100 Freestyle with a time of 45.73.
 
Senior Alex Smyre took the win in the 200 Butterfly with a time of 1:51.09. In the 50 Freestyle, sophomore Manoel Silva was first in 20.82 as the Bulldogs finished in the top four positions. Junior Ney Chagas Filho won the 100 Backstroke in 50.41. Freshman Tymofii Chemeryk won the 200 Freestyle in 1:41.28. Senior Miguel Marcos earned Wingate's final victory of the meet in the 400 Individual Medley, claiming the win in 4:08.47.

What They Are Saying
Wingate senior student-athlete Michele Orrù
 
"It was a tough semester for everyone, but we got the chance to race without thinking about school for the first time so far. It was a good opportunity for us to get together as a team one last time before the Christmas break. Overall, it was a success. The men's team brought the win home against our biggest rivals in the conference, thanks to the energy that everyone had on the pool deck. We've been racing and practicing with high intensity this season and the results have shown us what we are capable of achieving. The team is stronger than ever and I can only expect great things coming ahead."
 
Women's highlights
 
The Wingate women's team earned five wins, each coming in individual events. Junior Giulianna Garcia was the victor in the women's 500 Freestyle with a time of 5:08.07. Sophomore Grace Wilson led a 1-2-3 Wingate finish in the 1000 Freestyle, winning the event in 10:42.58.
 
Freshman Chloe Daybell swam a 2:25.38 to win the 200 Breaststroke. Daybell and her Bulldog teammates took the top four spots. Sophomore Valentina Zapata Ceballos was the winner of the 100 Butterfly, finishing in 57.55. Freshman Elizabete Paula Ozola touched first in the 200 Freestyle with a time of 1:56.17.
 
What They Are Saying
Wingate junior student-athlete Emily Shuttleworth
 
"After a long and hard semester, finishing it with a dual meet was something that was always going to be hard. It was our first meet without having to worry about school work, which was very nice. Considering there were many things against us, a six-hour bus journey, the other team suiting up and not having a regular week of training…the team pulled through and we had some good swims."
 
"We were leading by one point and the deciding factor for victory came down to the last relay race. Unfortunately, we did not win the race, which put us 10 points behind our opponent. This was our first loss since our October contest at Queens. We are okay…we did very well. We believe we will come back even stronger."
 
Next on the agenda for Wingate Swimming
 
The Bulldogs return to action Jan. 11, battling the University of Tampa in Riseman Aquatic Center on the UT campus. The Wingate-Tampa showdown concludes the Bulldogs' 2025 training trip.
 
Wingate University
 
Wingate University is a lab of difference-making that serves more than 3,400 students in North Carolina and offers 60 degree pathways, including 37 undergraduate majors, 10 pre-professional tracks and five dual-degree programs. Graduate students choose from seven master's and five doctoral programs. The University is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences.
 
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a leader in healthcare education where nearly one in five undergraduate students is preparing to be a pharmacist, physician assistant, physical therapist, occupational therapist or nurse. Student-athletes on Wingate's 26 teams compete in NCAA Division II and have brought home the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award the past 16 times it has been awarded. The University's motto is "Faith, Knowledge, Service." View current news and videos at www.wingate.edu.
 
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Day 1 -
Women 200 Free Relay
2nd - Wingate A (Ozola, Azirovic, Andrews, N. Dwojak), 1:38.58
4th - Wingate B (Beesmans, W. Dwojak, Condo, Ceballos), 1:42.16
5th - Wingate C (Mjimba, Osborne, Kingsland, Bondzie), 1:44.90
 
Men 200 Free Relay
2nd - Wingate A (Filho, Silva, Krstulovic, Sebbata), 1:22.78
4th - Wingate B (Danner, Douib, Smyre, Lee), 1:27.02
5th - Wingate C (Orru', Korona, Pattrakulchai, Racek), 1:30.95
 
Women 200 IM
2nd - Vera Karlsson, 2:07.82
3rd - Natalia Dwojak, 2:08.84
4th - Chloe Daybell, 2:09.69
 
Men 200 IM
2nd - Miguel Marcos, 1:53.87
4th - Vladimir Krstulovic, 1:56.05
 
Women 500 Free
1st - Giulianna Garcia, 5:08.07
4th - Livia Kingsland, 5:18.61
 
Men 500 Free
1st - Damir Ipkaev, 4:30.89
2nd - Fernando Dehaudt, 4:38.24
3rd - Giacomo Pietrini, 4:49.26
 
Women 100 Breaststroke
2nd - Natalia Dwojak, 1:04.90
3rd - Chloe Daybell, 1:07.25
4th - Elizabeth Solano, 1:10.68

Men 100 Breaststroke
2nd - Andres Marijena, 56.61
3rd - Mikolaj Dobrindt, 58.41
 
Women 200 Backstroke
2nd - Vera Karlsson, 2:06.88
3rd - Nicol Bellardi, 2:10.01
4th - Andrea Maltoni, 2:10.22
 
Men 200 Backstroke
2nd - Andreas Carrascal, 1:55.83
3rd - Anton Witzell, 1:59.03
 
Women 100 Free
2nd - Elizabete Paula Ozola, 52.60
3rd - Nina Azirovic, 53.64
4th - Franziska Muhlberger, 54.61
 
Men 100 Free
1st - Yassine Sebbata, 45.73
3rd - Manoel Silva, 45.87
 
Women 200 Butterfly
2nd - Giulianna Garcia, 2:09.24
3rd - Bahar Gursu, 2:14.04
 
Men 200 Butterfly
1st - Alex Smyre, 1:51.09
3rd - Balint Kovacs, 1:58.29
 
Women 400 Medley Relay
2nd - Wingate A (Ozola, N. Dwojak, Ceballos, Azirovic), 3:53.44
3rd - Wingate B  (Beesmans, Daybell, Garcia, Condo), 4:02.09
5th - Wingate C (Maltoni, Solano, Widdowson, Wilson), 4:08.62
 
Men 400 Medley Relay
2nd - Wingate A (Filho, Martijena, Krstulovic, Sebbata), 3:21.77
3rd - Wingate B (Witzell, Sadler, Smyre, Silva), 3:24.92
5th - Wingate C (Marcos, Dobrindt, Kovacs, Chemeryk), 3:32.32
 
Day 2 -
Women 200 Medley Relay
2nd - Wingate A (Karlsson, N. Dwojak, Ceballos, Ozola), 1:45.09
3rd - Wingate B (Beesmans, Daybell, Garcia, Azirovic), 1:50.72
4th - Wingate C (Bellardi, Luce, Bondzie, Condo), 1:52.40
 
Men 200 Medley Relay
2nd - Wingate A (Filho, Martijena, Smyre, Sebbata), 1:31.03
4th - Wingate B (Witzell, Sadler, Silva, Krstulovic), 1:33.34
5th - Wingate C (Costa, Lerna, Older, Danner), 1:37.25
 
Women 1000 Free
1st - Grace Wilson, 10:42.58
2nd - Livia Kingsland, 10:42.59
3rd - Emily Shuttleworth, 10:48.88
 
Men 1000 Free
1st - Damir Ipkaev, 9:23.88
2nd - Fernando Dehaudt, 9:37.38
 
Women 50 Free
3rd - Nina Azirovic, 24.84
 
Men 50 Free
1st - Manoel Silva, 20.82
2nd - Yassine Sebbata, 20.87
3rd - Ney Filho, 21.03
4th - Vladimir Krstulovic, 21.18
 
Women 100 Back
2nd - Vera Karlsson, 57.58
3rd - Elizabete Ozola, 57.69
 
Men 100 Back
1st - Ney Filho, 50.41
3rd - Andreas Carrascal, 52.73
 
Women 200 Breast
1st - Chloe Daybell, 2:25.38
2nd - Natalia Dwojak, 2:26.75
3rd - Franziska Muhlberger, 2:27.04
4th - Elizabeth Solano, 2:29.58
 
Men 200 Breast
2nd - Mikolaj Dobrindt, 2:07.71
3rd - Andres Martijena, 2:09.37
 
Women 100 Fly
1st - Valentina Ceballos, 57.55
2nd - Kukuwah Bondzie, 58.45
4th - Vera Karlsson, 59.04
 
Men 100 Fly
3rd - Alex Smyre, 49.95
4th - Vladimir Krstulovic, 50.47
 
Women 200 Free
1st - Elizabete Paula Ozola, 1:56.17
4th - Emily Shuttleworth, 1:56.94
 
Men 200 Free
1st - Tymofii Chemeryk, 1:41.28
2nd - Yassine Sebbata, 1:41.69
 
Women 400 IM
2nd - Bahar Gursu, 4:41.02
3rd - Chloe Daybell, 4:42.29
 
Men 400 IM
1st - Miguel Marcos, 4:08.47
4th - Kacper Korona, 4:22.16
 
Women 400 Free Relay
2nd - Wingate A (Azirovic, Ozola, Muhlberger, N. Dwojak), 3:31.41
4th - Wingate B (Condo, Mjimba, Kertynska, Gursu), 3:45.65
5th - Wingate C (Osborne, Shuttleworth, Wilson, Chadwell), 3:47.25
 
Men 400 Free Relay
2nd - Wingate A (Sebbata, Silva, Chemeryk, Krstulovic), 3:02.89
3rd - Wingate B (Ipkaev, Witzell, Dehaudt, Costa), 3:07.40
6th - Wingate C (Carrascal, Lee, Pattrakulchai, Pietrini), 3:16.64